Chapter Nine

 

Chapter Nine. 1

Chapter 9 Overview. 1

Supporting Your Web Masters 2

Creating a Web Folder using Windows 2000 or Windows ME. 2

Creating a Web Folder using Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 98. 6

Choices for Publishing Web Content 7

 

 

 

Chapter 9 Overview

 

Chapter Nine explains the procedure used by webmasters to pass data to their web site on your server. Before Microsoft released Office 2000, web masters had two choices for posting web data:  One was through FrontPage and the second was through FTP (File Transfer Protocol).  Office 2000 gave web masters a third option, the Web Folder.  Web Folders require a web site with FrontPage Extensions.  What is unique about the Web Folder is the folder is mapped directly to the web server. This allows the web master to save a document directly to the web server thus publishing the document in the same step as saving the document. Additionally, this chapter will give step-by-step procedures for creating web folders using Windows 2000 and Windows Millennium (ME).  This chapter will also cover creating Web Folders with NT 4.0 and Windows 98.

 

Supporting Your Webmasters

 

 

Creating a Web Folder using Windows 2000 or Windows ME

The information provided in this section assumes you are running Windows 2000 or Windows ME with Office 2000 and Internet Explorer 5.0.  Directions for Windows 98 and NT4.0 will follow this section.

 

With a Front Page extended Web, you may use any program contained in Office 2000 to create web pages.

 

 

 

1.      At the Windows 2000 or Windows ME desktop, Double click My Network Places.

 



 

2.      My Network Places window: Double click Add Network Place.

 

 

 

 

3.      Add Network Place Wizard window:  In the Type the location of the Network Place: field; type the URL of your web site.  In this example http://www.learniis.edu has been used.  Click Next.



 

 

4.      Enter Network Password window:  Type the User name: and Password: in the appropriate fields.  Click OK.

Note the Save this password in your password list check box in the lower portion of this window.  If you do not feel this workstation is secure at all times, remove this check mark.

 

The web server will challenge you for authentication.  Type your User name and Password in the appropriate fields.  For security, Uncheck the Save this password in your password list.

 

 

 

5.      Add Network Place Wizard window:  The URL will be placed in the Enter a name for this Network Place: field.  Click Finish.

 

You may also give the folder a friendly name.  For example: Learn IIS Main Web site.

 

 

6.      http://www.learniis.edu window: will now open displaying the contents of this web site.

 

You now have a Web Folder mapped to your machine. 

 

Documents may now be opened, edited and saved directly to this folder just as you would save to your local hard drive on your machine.

 

 

 

7.      My Network Places window:  Open My Network Places window:  to locate this Web Folder in the future.  To open this Web Folder, double click this folder just as you would open any other folder.
 

 

 

 

 

 

Creating a Web Folder using Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 98

The information provided in this section assumes you are running Windows 98 or Windows NT 4.0 with Office 2000 and Internet Explorer 5.0.

 

With a Front Page extended Web, you may use any program contained in Office 2000 to create web pages.  The best part is the ability to save or copy your web pages/site to the Web Server.  To get started, you must create your Web Folder.

 

1.      At the Windows NT 4.0 or Windows 98 desktop, Double click My Computer.

 

 

 

2.      My Computer window: Double click Web Folders.

 

 

 

 

3.      Web Folders window:  Double click Add Web Folder.

 

 

 

4.      Add Web Folder window:  In the Type the location to add: field; type the URL of your web site.  In this example http://www.learniis.edu has been used.  Click Next.

 

 

 

 

5.      Enter Network Password window:  Type the User name: and Password: in the appropriate fields.  Click OK.

Note the Save this password in your password list check box in the lower portion of this window.  If you do not feel this workstation is secure at all times, remove this check mark.

 

The web server will challenge you for authentication.  Type your User name and Password in the appropriate fields.  For security, Uncheck the Save this password in your password list.

 

 

6.      Add Web Folder window:  The URL will be placed in the Enter a name for this Network Place: field.  Click Finish.

 

You may also give the folder a friendly name.  For example: Learn IIS Main Web site.

 

 

 

 

 

 

7.      Web Folders window:  Double click on the Web Folder icon to open the folder. 

 

 

 

8.      http://www.learniis.edu window: will now open displaying the contents of this web site.

 

You now have a Web Folder mapped to your machine. 

 

Documents may now be opened, edited and saved directly to this folder just as you would your local hard drive on your machine.

 

 

 

 

 

9.      Web Folders window:  Open My Computer then open Web Folders window:  to locate this Web Folder in the future.  To open this Web Folder, double click this folder just as you would open any other folder.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Choices for Publishing Web Content

 

There are a number of reasons I could say Microsoft’s software development has been great for the end user.  If I were to pick the top two, I would have to say Standardization across products and building the ability to save virtually any document to the web.  The ability to save documents to the web is what I would like to focus on for a brief moment.  Each product in the Microsoft Office 2000 Suite has the ability to save files to the web via the web folder.  I will break these products into two groups: Products that can be used to create a web site and Products that can enhance a web site.

Creating Web Sites

q       FrontPage

To quote the Microsoft web site:

 “The Microsoft FrontPage® 2000 Web site creation and management tool gives you everything you need to create and manage exactly the site you want, whether you're creating a personal Web page or a corporate Internet or intranet site.”

 

This has to be my personal favorite for creating web pages.  FrontPage is powerful enough for the veteran web master and intuitive enough for the beginner.  If your district can afford to distribute this product, you cannot lose.

 

q       Word

To quote the Microsoft web site:

“Microsoft Word 2000 provides powerful tools for creating and sharing professional documents that anyone with a Web browser can view making it easy for team members to collaborate online.”

 

The first time I sat down to create a web document with this product, I awe struck.  The power of this product is great.  Word also contains an outstanding Wizard to help your web master get started.  If you can type, you can create a web page.  If you can save a document, you can publish your document to the web.

 

q        Publisher

To quote the Microsoft web site:

“Microsoft Publisher 2000 helps you easily create, customize, and publish materials such as newsletters, brochures, flyers, catalogs, and Web sites. Publish easily on your desktop printer, at a copy shop or commercial print shop, or directly to the Web.”

 

This is the product for your timid web master.  Wizards walk the user through the creation of a professional looking web site.  

 

 

 

 

Enhancing Web Sites

q       PowerPoint

To quote the Microsoft web site:

“Microsoft PowerPoint® 2000 provides a complete set of tools for creating powerful presentations. Organize and format your material easily, illustrate your points with your own images or clip art, and even broadcast your presentations over the Web.”

 

I do not think anyone needs to be sold on the power of PowerPoint.  However, consider the ability to share that presentation or lesson with parents or community members in their home.

 

q       Excel

To quote the Microsoft web site:

“With Microsoft Excel 2000, you can take advantage of comprehensive tools to create spreadsheets and share them on the Web for universal viewing and collaboration.”

 

With the ability to share data via the web, the power of this tool increases exponentially.  Charts and graphs display in the web browser as on a sheet of paper.

 

q       Access

Access in my opinion is one of the strongest products in the Office line.  While its strengths are not creating web pages, Access does have the ability to save reports as web pages.  This allows critical data to be disseminated to the masses.

 

q       PhotoDraw

To quote the Microsoft web site:

“Microsoft PhotoDraw® 2000 Version 2 combines photo-editing and drawing tools in one streamlined application that makes it easy to create professional-looking graphics for Web sites and printed material. It works seamlessly with other Office applications, and includes more than 20,000 customizable images and clip art.”

 

 

 

If space allowed, I would share step-by-step procedures for all of these products.  Unfortunately, that would require another volume to this book.  The most important point to pass on to your web masters is that Microsoft has a number of outstanding products that are web enabled.  Your web master does not need to be a technical guru to create web pages.  Thanks to these programs, the necessity for knowing the html code is no longer necessary.